


Falling Fast

by anxious_soul



Series: Bad Things Happen [5]
Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Avengers Family, Christmas, Domestic Avengers, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Hurt Tony Stark, Hypothermia, I'm Bad At Summaries, I'm Bad At Tagging, I'm Bad At Titles, Ice Skating, Protective Avengers, The Avengers Are Good Bros
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-08
Updated: 2020-11-08
Packaged: 2021-03-09 05:34:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,614
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27439654
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/anxious_soul/pseuds/anxious_soul
Summary: In which Tony takes the team to his family's holiday home for their first Christmas together, he suggests they go ice skating and disaster strikes.
Series: Bad Things Happen [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1889176
Comments: 18
Kudos: 83





	Falling Fast

**Author's Note:**

> Bad Things Happen Prompt(s): Falling Through Ice
> 
> Hey... so it's been quite some time... how's everyone doing? Uni has been hectic, overwhelming and downright draining, but I've also been enjoying it despite that and COVID; due to the UK going into another lockdown, I've gone home, so hopefully have time to recuperate from all my uni exhaustion! Oh, I also now have a boyfriend... we literally became official on Monday and then went into lockdown on Thursday so I won't see him for a month... oh well, quite frankly I'm not devastated because I am a horrible person and don't like socialising... side note, I'm also having a sexuality (?) crisis because I might be asexual... 
> 
> But anyway, I hope everyone is okay and I am sorry about how slow my updating is nowadays; I've been trying to work on this for two months, I also realise that it has been exactly two months to the date since I last posted... sorry! I think it's because I'm back home that it's easier to write or something (which is ironic because I'm still doing uni -it's been online all semester so I can do it at home- and my degree is in Creative Writing yet my writing ability has all but vanished lol!).

When he was a little boy, Jarvis had taken him ice skating on a frozen lake by the Stark’s holiday home in Aspen, Colorado. Each Christmas, the family went there, it wasn’t until Tony’s second Christmas that Jarvis and his wife, Ana, were invited. He knew it was because his parents couldn’t be bothered to look after him. Still, Tony didn’t mind. He’d always preferred the Jarvis’ to his parents. 

So when the boy was five, Jarvis felt it safe enough to teach Tony how to ice skate. The boy learned quickly and never stopped laughing, his grin was almost frozen to his face. It became a tradition until the holidays came to an abrupt end.

**——LINE BREAK——**

The first Christmas with the Avengers spelt the first time Tony had returned to the Stark home inColorado; he’d sent cleaners over every month to keep it tidy, but he hadn’t been there in nearly three decades. Yet when the team moved into his tower and they became a family, the others had spoken about going away for Christmas and before Tony could really think about what he was saying, he was suggesting his Aspen house and telling them all the great things to do around there. 

They agreed and soon enough the team found themselves on his private jet for their five and a half hour flight.

**——LINE BREAK——**

Leading the team around the grounds was enjoyable aside from the occasional snowball that hit Tony on the back of his head; he knew it was Clint, but he could never catch the archer in action. It was as they were looping back to the warm home that Tony came to an abrupt stop as his eyes caught sight of the glistening solid lake to his right; it was hidden behind a few trees, but Tony knew how to spot it. He’d almost forgotten, but his mind supplied him with its location subconsciously.

“How about we head back and grab our ice skates?” He asked suddenly,

“Sure?” Bruce replied questioningly as he looked at the others who were equally baffled by Tony’s abruptness. 

It wasn’t long before they were back down at the frozen lake with a nostalgic Tony, childish Clint, excited Thor, nervous Bruce, indifferent Natasha and a worried, almost scared, Steve… for some reason.

“What’s up, Capsicle? Scared of some ice?” Tony taunted, though concern crossed through his eyes,

“Is this safe?”  


“Of course, it is. I skated across this every Christmas with Jarvis for years, never fell through and never heard a crack. We’ll be fine, Cap, live a little,” Tony exclaimed as he finished getting his ice skates on and started to glide across the ice; Clint and Thor joined him seconds later whilst Natasha coaxed Bruce onto it and going as far as to let the uncomfortable man hold onto her. Steve just stared before hesitantly joining in. 

**——LINE BREAK——**

Everything was going well with laughter slicing through the icy air as six sets of ice skates slid elegantly over the frozen lake. With twinkling blue eyes, Steve sent a grin over to Tony, who he’d made eye contact with. Tony began to reciprocate the grin only for it to immediately vanish as a look of horror darkened his cinnamon eyes. 

An earth-shattering crack cut through the jovial atmosphere and heads darted quickly to where the sound came from; concern flooded everyone’s face as they stared at a frozen Tony. The ice had broken ever so slightly, but they all knew that a single shift in weight would have the genius plummeting downwards instantly. 

“Did anyone bring any rope or anything?” Steve asked looking towards Natasha and Clint, gently the redhead nodded and moved delicately across the ice to her bag on the snow. Grabbing the rope, she threw it to Steve, who was the closest to Tony; he began to unravel the rope.

“What’s the plan, Cap?”  


“I’m going to throw you the end of the rope, Tony, I want you to tie it around yourself or to yourself then I’ll pull you over carefully. If the ice breaks, you’ll be tethered to the rope and we’ll be able to get you out. Sound good?”

“Sounds perfect, Cap,” Tony grinned but everyone could tell he was struggling to hide his terror.

**——LINE BREAK——**

The blond threw the rope and Tony carefully reached out to grab the end as it came near him; no matter how careful he had been, it was all for nought. 

The second Tony tried to grab it, another ear-splitting crack echoed through the area and before anyone could react, the genius fell through the ice leaving the rope unattached inches from where the human-sized hole was. 

No one moved. They could only stare in horror as Tony bobbed up and down in the frozen water trying desperately to grab the rope or to just latch onto the ice and pull himself up. But he couldn’t. Thankfully, it was only a few seconds that kept the other Avengers motionless. 

**——LINE BREAK——**

All the air left his lungs as he plummeted downwards into the glacial depths of the lake. He struggled and fought against the water which sought to be his doom; desperately, Tony tried to grab hold of the rope that dangled just out of reach, but to no avail. Within seconds, his energy began to fade quickly. 

He thought he felt someone grab him but by that point, he was falling further to the bottom of the lake and was too tired to notice.

**——LINE BREAK——**

Facing his fears, Steve dove into the water with the rope tied around his waist as Thor held the other end, just waiting for when he needed to pull the blond and the genius out. The water burned his eyes and froze his skin as he searched for his friend; he spotted a faint and familiar glow sinking lower in the depths of the lake. Diving down quickly, Steve raced towards the promising glow of the arc reactor as it showed signs of life within the genius.

Grasping hold of the smaller man and ignoring the slight flickering of the arc reactor, Steve rushed to the surface as quickly as he dared to swim; it wouldn’t do to save Tony from drowning only to kill the both of them from surfacing too fast.*

It wasn’t long before they were both being helped back onto the ice, Steve didn’t get a good look at Tony as Clint quickly took him away and Thor assisted the other blond to his feet, but from the grave look on the god’s face, Steve knew Tony wasn’t looking good. 

**——LINE BREAK——**

They had moved back to the house whilst waiting for the ambulance that Natasha had called before she’d wandered away to call Coulson, Fury, Pepper and Rhodey; she had the worst job because the latter two she had to call would no doubt be difficult to deal with. Whilst she was away, Bruce with the help from Clint got Tony out of his wet clothes and into some warm clothes once he’d been dried off. Thor had gone off to help Steve out; the soldier needed to change as well to get dry and warm so the god was helping him and keeping the blond from falling into memories of another time he went into ice. 

The genius thankfully began to come around as unconsciousness faded like the cold as warmth encompassed him and chased the cold away.

“Steady, Tony, steady,”

“Cold,” he croaked with chattering teeth,

“I know, but you’ll warm up soon and an ambulance should be here soon.”

“No B-Bruce,”

“I’m sorry, Tones, but you can’t get out of it this time. You could have hypothermia and the doctors need to treat you, not me.”

“I’m fine,” he muttered trying to control the chattering of his teeth, but failing,

“No. No, you’re not,” Bruce murmured gently as he gestured down at the shivering form, “look at you, Tony! Your lips are almost blue and I know parts of your skin is; your speech is slurred and your breathing is slow. That all adds up to hypothermia.”

“I’m fine,” he drawled but it came out slurred and it was clear that exhaustion was taking a hold of him, “‘m just tired,”

“No, don’t go to sleep, Tony,” Bruce exclaimed and gestured for Clint to come over; together the two managed to hold the genius’ attention and keep him awake until the ambulance finally arrived and took him away to get treated.

**——LINE BREAK——**

“Don’t give me an ‘I told you so’,” was the first thing the genius croaked when he woke to find the Steve by his hospital bed with his sketchpad out,

“I would never,” smirked the blond,

“Sure,”

“How are you feeling, Tony?” He asked, joking aside as he placed his sketchpad down,

“Alright, bit drowsy.”

“You were in intensive care for a couple of days because your case of hypothermia was severe,” came an answer from the door and Tony looked up to find Bruce entering with a small smile,

“Next time, we go to the beach for Christmas,” Clint suggested as he waltzed into the room,

“Come on, you mean to tell me no one had fun prior to my accident?” Tony questioned somewhat jokingly,

“It was very enjoyable, however, I think you falling through ruined ice skating for everyone,” Natasha answered and there were several murmurs of agreement, even from Thor.

“Fine, next year someone else chooses where we go,” the genius relented before turning to face Bruce and saying something that led to the room groaning in annoyance, “so when can I leave the hospital?”

**Author's Note:**

> *death by surfacing too fast isn’t common but it’s something that happens when scuba divers rise too quickly and get decompression sickness; it’s only in extreme cases when people die, but I thought it’d be a good thing to say in this even though they weren’t diving, but given Steve’s super soldier-ness, he’d probably be able to swim very quickly.
> 
> So 'G' is next (no clue when it'll be written/posted sorry!) and the trope will likely be 'Gunshot Wound' but I'm trying to think of a plot to surround it -like maybe a bank robbery or at a charity gala? Feel free to leave a suggestion!  
> 
> 
> [My tumblr](https://anxious---soul.tumblr.com) feel free to say hi or something!  
> 
> 
> Anyway,  
> Thank you for reading,  
> Hope you enjoyed this,  
> Please leave a kudos and a comment  
> 


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